Village Beat

Many Village institutions are now transitioning their programming to a virtual format so that you can enjoy the arts from the safety of your own home. Indulge in short films picked by the IFC staff. Explore the Village's virtual exhibits, from historic landmarks like the Merchant House Museum to galleries featuring modern paintings and sculpture like the New York Studio School. Gain inspiration from Bowery Poetry's open mics. And, get lost in the nostalgia of GVSHP's best cinematic film guide and essential reading list on Greenwich Village history. Check out programming from our Village favorites below:

Celebrate National Poetry Month and quarantine with Bowery Poetry! Join their social distance creative hub for free writing workshops, writing prompts & performances every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday & Thursday. Follow their Instagram and check every week for different opportunities to share and network with some of the most amazing poets!

Cooper Union has published their long-awaited exhibit, Postcards from Under New York, that can be digitally viewed now until May 17th. This exhibition documents NYC's underground transit system at its inception; this collection of postcards represents not just what was being built under NYC in the early 20th century, but how it was being culturally promoted and received. Also, Cooper Union is continuing their Spring 2020 Intra-Disciplinary Seminar series which will be made available online following the recording. Check out their calendar here.

Along with moving their language classes to a virtual format, Deutsches Haus has jumpstarted their online programming with posting many of their past events to their YouTube channel, blogging their interviews of artists, writers, thinkers, academics, and filmmakers through their diverse residency and visiting scholarship programs, and hosting their virtual exhibition project, "What I See From My Window," looking through windows across the globe and sharing personal views that bring us together just at a time when we are kept apart. Stay updated on their event scheduling here.

What better time to lose yourself in a great book about Greenwich Village or the East Village, or finally see that movie about the neighborhood that you never got to take in? Village Preservation has put together two great guides to help get you through this time. Twelve Essential Reads About Greenwich Village and the East Village includes great novels, autobiographies, histories, and collections that illuminate the fascinating stories of the places we call home. Their Epic Greenwich Village and East Village Watch List looks at films from the 1950s to the 2010s that captured the Village's charming streets, people, and places on film. See their other digital events on their calendar here.

IFC Center has taken their signature short film programming online with "Wish We Were Here: Shorts by IFC Center Staff," a showcase of short documentary, comedy, drama, animated and experimental work by the creators who work as their ushers, floor staff, box office cashiers, managers and projectionists. A different film will be posted to their website every few days, watchable for free. The series is sponsored by subscription streaming service IFC Films Unlimited.

Joe's Pub is thrilled to announce a weekly series of live-streamed performances: JOE'S PUB LIVE! Every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night at 8PM, join them on YouTube Live as they share free, live-streamed and archived performances from their iconic cabaret stage. See their calendar of virtual performances.

Watch La MaMa Experimental Theater Club’s weekly live performances! Cafe La MaMa Live series brings La MaMa's 1960s café aesthetic to a virtual platform that links performers and audiences in real time across distance. Guest curators each week give artists a digital platform to share their work with the world. Also, La MaMa and CultureHub collaborate in bringing you their Downtown Variety Series. This series uses emerging technologies to create a new venue for artistic expression that questions how art can function and how we as a society can survive challenging periods of history. Check out their full calendar of online happenings.

Visit the Merchant's House Museum, the only intact nineteenth-century family home in New York City, and their "at home" exhibits. Peak into the life of Sylvia DeWolf Ostrander as we learn about 19th century art and fashion through her belongings founded by Stacy Renee Morrison in the exhibit: Sylvia: A 19th Century Life Unveiled. MHM has gathered a list of online offerings to keep you engaged including: Videos & Lectures, Books & Articles, Virtual Backgrounds for your Next Zoom Meeting, and Fun Coloring Pages to Print. Check it out here.

Every Thursday at 5pm, tune into NYSS' Instagram Live Streams, Insights into Process, where members of the NYSS community invite us into their studios. Additionally, NYSS posts their latest Evening Lecture series onto their YouTube channel. The Evening Lecture Series offers a platform for diverse perspectives and spirited conversation between artists, scholars, students and the general public on contemporary art and art history subjects alike. From home, you can visit their virtual gallery and check out NYSS' current exhibitions and past exhibitions from the last twenty years!

The Textile Arts Center (TAC) is pleased to host Small Works / Big Impact, an online fundraiser exhibition featuring the work of alumni, faculty and staff of the Textile Arts Center's Artists Programs supporting the TAC's Artist in Residence Scholarship Fund. Click here to view the exhibition.

The New School's Zolberg Institute on Migration and Mobility is hosting an online series of short discussions on the nexus of migration related issues and COVID-19. A lot of events are currently centered on creating a discussion with faculty, students and staff to share experiences on their thoughts about the current pandemic. As the New School is working on transitioning their events to an online format, check out their calendar here.